Cooney’s Law Brings Justice To Mutilated Rescue Dog

Nevada’s Governor signed two bills into law last week to protect animals. Cooney’s Law makes it a felony to unjustifiably mutilate, torture, maim, starve or kill an animal and a long overdue Puppy Mill Law establishes rules for commercial breeders.

When Governor Brian Sandoval, an animal lover with four dogs, two cats, two frogs and a turtle signed Cooney’s Law he brought the state into compliance with 44 other states that make extreme cruelty to animals a felony crime.

Cooney was a 3-year-old rescued Pit bull mix who was brutally killed when her owner cut open her stomach with a box-cutter. Raymond Rios was a transient living in a motel in Reno, NV. He thought a mouse had crawled into the dog’s stomach, so he placed her into the bathtub and mutilated her in an attempt to release the rodent. Cooney died from her injuries.

The law in effect at the time only allowed Rios to be charged with a misdemeanor crime.

Cooney’s Law, which was sponsored by Sen. Shirley Breeden, D-Henderson would now make a crime like this a felony that is punishable by at least one year in prison.

The Las Vegas Review-Journal reported the law applies to “cats, dogs or any animal kept by a person for companionship or pleasure.”

The Puppy Mill Law requires animal breeders to be licensed and allows animal control officers to inspect the facility at “any reasonable hour.”

The article reads in part: "Cooneys Law makes it a felony to unjustifiably mutilate, torture, maim, starve or kill an animal and a long overdue Puppy Mill Law establishes rules for commercial breeders.

do you guys want to hear something sad that dog Cooney wasnt Raymond Rios she was mine and i miss her she was my world and when i found out was when this all past and he wasnt getting aressted yet, but he got arrested on christmas eve and he didnt even do time and that pisses me off he was my moms boyfrined and he always was hurting our animals and most of the time was the one trying to get him to stop and then i would get arested myself because i would do anything and everything to get him to stop if you want to hear more on what happen after all that hit me up on facebook brittaney mollinedo and today april 7th is cooney mollinedos birthday

Wow! First time I've ever seen all respondents vote one way! (the trolls must be off torturing animals). I just don't understand hurting animals, who depend on us for their survival. Never have, never will.

I am a criminal defense lawyer. Have been for 23 years. I have never taken, nor will I ever take, an animal abuse case. I have never prosecuted because that is not the way I am made but I would LOVE taking the animal abuse prosecutor's position in Harris County. I do not think that every case should be a felony, or that every person should go to prison. But, I believe that there are not enough options available for the prosecution of animal abusers. I believe there should be felony options in every state for the proper cases, and there are plenty of them. The person who did this to Cooney is not only a very cruel and sick individual but a dangerous person. Anyone who can use his hands and feel the pressure of what he did without remorse is capable of anything and needs severe punishment. He is beyond repair.